Finally managed to watch this (stupidly changed a browser setting which then prevented me from watching flash content and only figured out today which box I needed to tick to be able to watch ustream again!). I was amazed at the audio quality, I could hear your aquarium in the background! It would be interesting to hear how the microphone copes in a noisier environment. As others have pointed out the shakiness might be a problem if the webcast was longer but for this length I thought the video quality was okay.

I made a stupid cellphone video that was actually a live stream tour on my Ustream channel of my messy office. Then I read a short story. Yaaaaay! The stream was broken once when Paul called me (way to steal focus, Paul!), so there are two videos: If you watched it (live or recorded, pleas...

When Stand By Me was released, I must've been 14 or 15. It's strange how I couldn't remember specifics about it, but I remember my very strong feelings when watching it for the first time.
Stand By Me is one of those films that I remember emotionally, not visually, if that makes any sense. I guess I was just the right age when watching it.
I'm reluctant to go back and watch films again that made a deep impression on me as a kid/teenager. I fear the re-watching will taint those memories.
What I distinctly remembered was that I was crying. I don't remember in which scenes specifically, but I remember how I sat in the cinema and cried my eyes out . . . And the sheer terror of watching the boys run along that bridge. And my utter, utter disdain for Kiefer Sutherland's Ace. In fact, this disdain was so strong, I've never been cured of it. To this very day I just don't like Kiefer Sutherland. Sorry, Kiefer. I think this was cemented because the next film I saw with him was Lost Boys.
I just finished watching it again. It totally hadn't registered with me that John Cusack is also in this. And that it was based on a Stephen King story. Wow. Whodathunk. Well, everybody except me, obviously.
And Ace really isn't that bad. ;0) I'm glad that even 25 years on, it still holds up. It doesn't seem dated. I guess one still has to be in the right frame of mind (meaning: be a kid or a teenager) for it to have an impact but I'm glad that in theory kids these days can still watch it and connect with the story and not think "This is soooo 80's".
A true classic. Something everybody who was involved in the making should be immensely proud of.
Thank you, Wil.

Twenty-five years ago today, on my future wife's 17th birthday, a movie I did called Stand By Me was released. I didn't know it at the time, but it would define my childhood and change my life. Here are a few things I wanted to share, to mark the occasion. I talked to NPR last week about Stand B...

I'm glad to hear that in the end you seem to have enjoyed yourself. The first blog posts sounded a bit like you were miserable and trying not to sound it.
Düsseldorf is very provincial and doesn't have as much to offer as, say Hamburg or Berlin has. But then again, that makes it a lot more representative of Germany.
What we do have in Düsseldorf is a big Japanese community. It used to be the biggest Japanese community in Europe. Which means Cosplayers are a common sight around here (not just Japanese kids but I'm guessing they were the ones who started it). On any given day, you're likely to run into groups of teenagers dressed up as Manga/Anime characters, and they come out in force on "Japan Day".
We are glad you came and we were very happy to have you.
So I do hope you come back and someone will show you the countryside and the neighbouring cities like Cologne! Maybe next time you can come and stay for the Japan Day celebrations (which always take place in May, except this year--they have been postponed because of the tragedy in Northern Japan).

I don't drink at cons. I mean, I'll have a beer or maybe a glass of wine with dinner, but I don't go out drinking the way young people go out drinking, even though I usually see people I love and it would be a lot of fun to go out to a pub for some pints. I figure that I'm already pushing my bod...

I can't believe they don't serve vegetarian food at the Maritim! It's a disgrace. It's supposed to be a top-notch hotel. This kind of stuff really angers me!
I work in Düsseldorf and at the office, we sometimes order food from a vegetarian take-away. Maybe you can enlist Stephan's help to translate the menu and you can order something from them?
http://www.jade-imbiss.de/
Also, there are vegan restaurants at Graf-Adolf-Platz and in Hoffeldstraße but I don't think they deliver food (although maybe they would for you if Stephan told them it's for you?!).
http://sattgruen.de/auf-zu.html
Their opening hours are pretty limited though.
I'm so sorry about this bread-business. This kind of backwards thinking and non-service and unflexibility really make me angry! :o(

I slept late, and woke to the room service guy knocking on my door. I vaguely recall signing the order receipt before falling back into bed for another hour, when my growling stomach finally won the battle between it and my tired brain. I'd like to believe that my stomach told my brain, "Look, b...